There is just a week left to spend or bank your old paper fivers

People have just a week left to spend old paper £5 Bank of England notes in shops before they lose their legal tender status.

Friday May 5 marks the last day that the banknote featuring prison reformer Elizabeth Fry will be legal tender. Around 155 million of the notes are still in circulation.

After this date, shops no longer have to accept it as payment.

The Bank of England said some banks and building societies may continue to accept the old fiver after May 5 - but this is at their own discretion so people may want to check their own bank or building society’s policy.

Several major banks and building societies told the Press Association that customers can continue to deposit old fivers after May 5.

But some also said it was a good idea for people to give themselves time to hand in old fivers rather than leaving it until after they have lost their legal tender status.

The Post Office said that it will still take the old £5 notes as payment or as a deposit into an account in one of its branches.

The Bank of England will continue to exchange the old £5 notes for all time, as it would for any other Bank note which no longer has legal tender status.

Old paper fivers and the new £5 note have co-existed since the polymer banknote was first issued by the Bank in September 2016.

The new Bank of England fiver is stronger than its predecessor and boasts new security features making it harder to counterfeit.

But it has been controversial as it emerged that traces of animal-derived additives were used in its production.

A public consultation has been launched by the Bank into how it produces new £20 polymer notes.

The Bank previously said it has held off signing supply contracts for the £20 polymer note, which is due to be released in 2020, in order to better understand “the range of public opinion” surrounding the use of tallow in banknote production and explore potential plant-based substitutes such as palm and coconut oil.

In September this year, the Bank will issue a new £10 polymer note featuring author Jane Austen, recognising “her universal appeal and enduring contribution to English literature”.

A spokesman for the Committee of Scottish Clearing Bankers, which represents Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland, said previously: “The paper Scottish fivers are not being withdrawn from circulation, they are just not being reissued.

“They don’t have a withdrawal date as such similar to the English £5 notes.”

Here is what some major account providers have said about whether people can still deposit £5 notes after May 5:

* Post Office - The old £5 note can still be used as payment or be deposited into an account at any of the 11,600 Post Office branches.

* Barclays - Barclays customers can continue to deposit the paper £5 note into their business or personal account. This will also apply to the old “round pound” when it ceases to be legal tender later this year, having been replaced by the new £1 coin.

Barclays said: “We would recommend that customers allow sufficient time to return old notes/coins rather than leave it until legal tender status is withdrawn.”

* Yorkshire Building Society - It will accept old fivers after May 5 and take them out of circulation when they come into its possession.

* Nationwide Building Society - Nationwide will continue to accept the old £5 notes from existing customers. Customers are required to pay the money into their account and they can then automatically withdraw the money in new notes if required.

* HSBC - It has said it will continue to accept the old £5 notes from its customers.

* Lloyds Banking Group (includes Halifax) - Existing customers will still be able deposit the old £5 notes.

* RBS/NatWest - It said that if a customer brings in one of its notes that is out of circulation, it replace them with new ones.

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